PROCEEDINGS OF THE SECOND ENTOMOLOGICAL MEETING 127 
In the Punjab Earias insulana attacks the fruit-capsules of this Mr. M. M. Lal. 
plant, which is grown to some extent round, about the sugarcane plots. 
We have never found Earias insulana in ambadi at Pusa. Mr. Fletcher. 
It has not been noticed in the Central Provinces. Mr. Khare. 
Hibiscus abelmoschus. 
, This is another plant without any regular English name. In Hindus- Mr. Fletcher. 
tani it is called mushkdana and Kastari bhindi. It is not grown as a : 
regular crop but we have been growing it in connection with our work 
on cotton bollworms, as it is a very favourite foodplant for Earias. 
The leaves are sometimes attacked by Diacrisia obliqua larve. 
The shoots and pods are attacked by :— 
Earias fabia 
ensulana 
»  cupreoviridis (chromataria) 
Gelechia gossypiella 
Prodenia litura 
Dysdercus cingulatus 
Oxycarenus letus. 
As regards the species of Harias, our experience is that H. abelmoschus 
is attacked much more freely than cotton. As regards the species 
concerned, we get roughly 3 insulana and 2 cupreoviridis to every 100 
examples of fabia. It is noteworthy that cwpreoviridis, which is other- 
wise known to feed on Sida and jute, has only been reared so far from 
H. abelmoschus and not from the other species of Hibiscus or from cotton. 
Gelechia gossypiella is found to a very small extent in the flowers 
and seeds inside the pods of H. abelmoschus, so that this plant is less 
attractive than cotton to Gelechia. 
Prodenia litura has been reared once only at Pusa from a pod, and 
is evidently a mere casual visitor in this plant. 
Dysdercus cingulatus and Oxycarenus letus both occur on H. abel- 
moschus as on other species of Hibiscus. 
93 
The points about H. abelmoschus, then, are :— 
(1) that it is extremely attractive to Harias fabia and (at Pusa 
to a less extent, probably because it is the less common 
species occurring here) to H. insulana. It is therefore more 
likely to be of use as a trap-crop and, as it does not provide 
a vegetable like bhindi, it is more likely to be destroyed 
at the right time, 
(2) it is the only Hibiscus, so far as we know, which is a foodplant 
of Earias cupreoviridis. 
